National Basketball Association
New Orleans 119, Minnesota 118
When: 8:00 PM ET, Wednesday, December 28, 2022
Where: Smoothie King Center, New Orleans, Louisiana
Officials: #67 Brandon Adair, #27 Mitchell Ervin, #34 Kevin Cutler
Attendance: 18669

Zion Williamson scored 14 of his career-high 43 points in the fourth quarter as the host New Orleans Pelicans came from behind to defeat the Minnesota Timberwolves 119-118 on Wednesday night.

The Timberwolves led by five points before Williamson took over, scoring his team's final 14 points of the game. His 3-pointer and hook shot on back-to-back possessions tied the score at 112-112 with 1:49 left.

Minnesota's Jaylen Nowell broke the tie with a jumper, but Williamson answered with a layup.

The Wolves' Jaden McDaniels made two free throws, but Williamson had a layup and a steal and a dunk to give New Orleans a 118-116 lead with 39.1 seconds left.

Anthony Edwards tied it with a dunk before Williamson was fouled and made one of two free throws to give the Pelicans a 119-118 lead with four seconds left. Edwards missed a baseline jumper as time expired.

Williamson made 14 of 21 field goals and 14 of 19 free throws in his return from a three-game absence due to health and safety protocol. Trey Murphy III added 21 points, CJ McCollum scored 20, Jonas Valanciunas had 12 points and 11 rebounds, and Naji Marshall scored 12 points as New Orleans won its fourth straight.

Edwards and D'Angelo Russell each scored 27 points, McDaniels added 19, Nowell scored 14, Naz Reid had 13 and Rudy Gobert 10 before fouling out as Minnesota lost its fourth straight.

The Pelicans trailed 55-49 at halftime, but closed within one point on Marshall's three-point play early in the third quarter.

Russell scored 13 points in the third as the Wolves expanded the lead to 81-71.

New Orleans closed within four on Murphy's 3-pointer before Minnesota twice increased the lead to seven.

Murphy made another 3-pointer to get the Pelicans within 88-86 at the end of the third quarter.

McCollum scored the first five points of the fourth quarter to give New Orleans a 91-88 lead.

The lead changed hands seven times before McDaniels scored on a drive and made a 3-pointer to give the Wolves a 104-100 lead midway through the quarter.

Then Williamson took over.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Minnesota   New Orleans
Anthony Edwards 27 Scoring Zion Williamson 43
D'Angelo Russell 4 Assists CJ McCollum 6
Rudy Gobert 8 Rebounds Jonas Valanciunas 11
D'Angelo Russell 9 Free Throws Made Zion Williamson 14
Anthony Edwards 2 Steals CJ McCollum 2
Rudy Gobert 4 Blocks Dyson Daniels 1
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Minnesota 118 50.6 10-29 24-32 18 35 8 6 11
New Orleans 119 48.1 11-23 30-43 22 43 4 6 15
Upcoming Games
  • New Orleans will play their next game at home against Philadelphia. The Pelicans have a W/L % of .636 after a win and .667 after a loss.
  • Minnesota will play their next game on the road against Milwaukee. The Timberwolves have a W/L % of .500 after a win and .421 after a loss.